Organic light-emitting display device including conductive lines having inclined surface

ABSTRACT

An organic light-emitting display device includes a board that has an active area and an inactive area in the vicinity of the active area, a dielectric layer is disposed over the board, a pad into which a signal or power is input is disposed in the inactive area a conductive line which is disposed on the dielectric layer and is connected to the pad and along which power is thus transferred to the active area, a bump pattern is disposed underneath the dielectric layer, and the bump pattern includes a positive taper that is inclined toward the direction of the conductive line. Both sides of the conductive line include an inclined surface.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims priority to Korean Patent Application No.10-2019-0174378, filed on Dec. 24, 2019, which is hereby incorporated byreference in its entirety.

BACKGROUND Field of the Disclosure

The present disclosure relates to an organic light-emitting displaydevice and, more particularly, to an organic light-emitting displaydevice capable of blocking moisture from permeating along a power wiringline in the organic light-emitting display device.

Description of the Background

Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) used in organic light-emittingdisplay devices are self-emissive elements. The organic light-emittingdiode (OLED) includes an emissive electroluminescent layer situatedbetween two electrodes. In the organic light-emitting diode, electronsand holes are injected into the emissive electroluminescent layer fromthe electron injection electrode (i.e., cathode) and the hole injectionelectrode (i.e., anode), respectively, and combine there to produceexcitons. When the excitons transit from the excited state to the groundstate, light is emitted.

In the organic light-emitting display device, a display panel is formedusing the organic light-emitting elements. According to a direction inwhich light is emitted, the display panel may be realized as atop-emission type, a bottom-emission type, and a dual-emission type.According to a drive scheme, the display panel may be realized as apassive matrix type and an active matrix type. The organiclight-emitting display device is so flexible that it can be realized insuch various forms as a form of having a curved surface and anartificially or mechanically bent form.

The organic light-emitting display device may be manufactured using aflexible display panel as a base panel. Thus, it is possible that theorganic light-emitting display device is realized in such various formsas an artificially or mechanically bent form or a form of having acurved surface.

The organic light-emitting display device with the features as describedabove has a very wide range of applications. However, in a case wherewater permeation occurs in an organic light-emitting display device inthe related art, due to its structural features, water permeates into anactive area in the organic light-emitting display device. Thus, thelifetime thereof decreases, or a defect in image quality, such as ablack spot, can occur. To prevent this, water is blocked in various waysfrom permeating and/or penetrating. Particularly, for application, astudy has been made on various structures for blocking water frompermeating and diffusing into an outer portion.

The above information disclosed in this Background section is only forenhancement of understanding of the background of the describedtechnology and therefore it may contain information that does not formprior art that is already known in this country to a person of ordinaryskill in the art.

SUMMARY

Accordingly, the present disclosure is to delay the time it takes forwater to permeate along an edge of a conductive line and to decrease thelikelihood that damage to the conductive line will occur. As a result,the lifetime and reliability of an active area are improved, thelikelihood that a defective in image quality will occur is decreased,and a sealing feature of a protective layer is improved.

Problems that the present disclosure purports to solve are not limitedto the problem described above, and from the following description,other problems that are not described above will be clearly understoodby a person of ordinary skill in the art.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided anorganic light-emitting display device including a board that has anactive area and an inactive area in the vicinity of the active area. Adielectric layer is disposed over a board. A pad into which a signal orpower is input is disposed in the inactive area. A conductive line whichis disposed on the dielectric layer and is connected to the pad andalong which power is thus transferred to the active area is formed. Abump pattern is disposed underneath the dielectric layer. The bumppattern includes a positive taper that is inclined toward the directionof the conductive line. Both sides of the conductive line include aninclined surface.

According to an aspect of the present disclosure, an organiclight-emitting display device that is capable of delaying the time ittakes for water to permeate along an edge of a line and additionallydecreasing the likelihood that damage to the line will occur isprovided. This provides advantages of improving the lifetime andreliability of an active area, decreasing the likelihood that adefective in image quality will occur, and improving a sealing featureof a protective layer. In addition, according to another aspect of thepresent disclosure, an organic light-emitting display apparatus that iscapable of improving step coverage when forming a protective film layeris provided. This provides an advantage of improving a sealing featureof the protective film layer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a furtherunderstanding of the disclosure and are incorporated in and constitute apart of the disclosure, illustrate aspects of the disclosure andtogether with the description serve to explain the principle of thedisclosure.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an organiclight-emitting display device;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration of asub-pixel circuit;

FIG. 3 is a diagram schematically illustrating a configuration of acircuit for a sub-pixel according to an aspect of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating a cross section of adisplay panel;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a mechanical feature of the displaypanel that is illustrated in FIG. 4 ;

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a display device that is to be includedin an electronic apparatus;

FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating an active area or aninactive area of a display device according to an aspect of the presentdisclosure;

FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams each illustrating a structure of an outerportion of an organic light-emitting display device according to anaspect of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 9A to 9C are diagrams each illustrating a structure of an outerportion of an organic light-emitting display device according to anotheraspect of the present disclosure; and

FIGS. 10A and 10B are diagrams each schematically illustrating astructure of an outer portion of an organic light-emitting displaydevice according to still another aspect of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Advantages and features of the present disclosure, and methods ofachieving the advantages and the features will be apparent from theaccompanying drawings and from aspects that will be described in detailbelow. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the aspectsthat will be disclosed below, and various different aspects thereof canbe implemented. The aspects are only provided to make a completedisclosure of the present disclosure and to provide full notice of thescope of the disclosure to a person of ordinary skill in the art towhich the present disclosure pertains. The scope of the presentdisclosure should be only defined by claims.

Shapes, sizes, scales, angles, quantities, and the likes that areillustrated in the drawings for description of the present disclosureare only given as examples and thus do not impose any limitation to thepresent disclosure. The same reference character throughout thespecification refers to the same constituent element. In addition, whenthe present disclosure is described, in a case where it is determinedthat detailed descriptions of functions and configurations known in therelated art will unnecessarily make the nature and gist of the presentdisclosure unapparent, detailed descriptions thereof are omitted. Theterms “include”, “have”, “is configured with”, and the like, which areused in the present specification, as long as the modifier “only” is notused, one or more other components may be added. In a case where aconstituent element is used as a singular form, unless otherwisedescribed in a particularly explicit manner, the general rule that thesingular includes the plural applies.

Unless otherwise explicitly described, when a constituent element isinterpreted, a range of errors allowable for the constituent element istaken into consideration.

For example, when the terms “above”, “over”, “below”, “under”,“underneath”, “adjacent to”, and the like are used to describe apositional relationship between two constituent elements, one or moreother constituent elements may be positioned between the two constituentelements.

For example, when the term “on” is used, two different elements orlayers are in contact with each other without one or more other elementsor layers in between.

Although used to describe various constituent elements, the terms first,second, and so on do not impose any limitation on the terms. The termsare used to distinguish one constituent component from one or more otherconstituent components. Therefore, a first constituent element that willbe described below may be a second constituent element that falls withinthe scope of the technological idea of the present disclosure.

The same reference character throughout the specification refers to thesame constituent element.

The size and thickness of each of the constituent elements that areillustrated in the drawings are given for convenient description, andthe present disclosure is not necessarily limited to the size andthickness.

Features of various aspects of the present disclosure may be integratedor combined severally or as a whole. It is sufficiently understood by aperson of ordinary skill that various interworking operations or drivingoperations are technically possible. The aspects may be implementedindependent of each other or may be implemented in conjunction with eachother.

The aspects of the present disclosure will be described in detail belowwith referring to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an organiclight-emitting display device. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagramillustrating a configuration of a sub-pixel circuit. FIG. 3 is a diagramillustrating a configuration of a circuit for a sub-pixel according toan aspect of the present disclosure.

As illustrated in FIG. 1 , the organic light-emitting display deviceincludes an image processing unit 160, a timing control unit 150, a datadrive unit 130, a gate drive unit 140, and a display panel 101.

The image processing unit 160 outputs a data enable signal DE and thelike, along with a data signal DATA supplied from the outside. Inaddition to the data enable signal DE, the image processing unit 160 mayoutput one or more of a vertical synchronization signal, a horizontalsynchronization signal, and a clock signal. Illustrations of thesesignals are omitted for convenient description. The image processingunit 160 is manufactured in the form of an integrated circuit (IC) on asystem circuit board.

The timing control unit 150 receives the data signal DATA from the imageprocessing unit 160, along with the data enable signal DE, or drivesignals that include the vertical synchronization signal, the horizontalsynchronization signal, the clock signal, and the like.

The timing control unit 150 outputs a gate timing control signal GDC forcontrolling operation timing of the gate drive unit 140 and a datatiming control signal DDC for controlling operation timing of the datadrive unit 130, on the basis of the drive signals. The timing controlunit 150 is manufactured in the form of an IC on a control circuitboard.

The data drive unit 130 samples and latches the data signal DATA that issupplied from the timing control unit 150, in response to the datatiming control signal DDC supplied from the timing control unit 150,converts the resulting data signal DATA into a gamma reference voltage,and outputs the gamma reference voltage. The data drive unit 130 outputsthe data signal DATA through data lines DL1 to DLn. The data drive unit130 is formed in the form of an IC on a data circuit board.

The gate drive unit 140 outputs a gate signal in response to the gatetiming control signal GDC supplied from the timing control unit 150. Thegate drive unit 140 outputs the gate signal through gate lines GL1 toGLm. The gate drive unit 140 is formed in the form of an IC on a gatecircuit board or is formed on the display panel 101 using agate-in-panel technique.

The display panel 101 displays an image in a manner that corresponds tothe data signal DATA and the gate signal that are supplied from the datadrive unit 130 and the gate drive unit 140, respectively. The displaypanel 101 includes sub-pixels SP for displaying an image.

The sub-pixel is formed according to a top-emission type, abottom-emission type or a dual-emission type that is selected accordingto a structure thereof. The sub-pixels SP includes a red sub-pixel, agreen sub-pixel, and a blue sub-pixel, or includes a white sub-pixel, ared sub-pixel, a green sub-pixel, and a blue sub-pixel. The sub-pixelsSP may have one or more different light-emitting areas according tolight-emitting features thereof.

As illustrated in FIG. 2 , one sub-pixel includes a switching transistorSW, a drive transistor DR, a capacitor Cst, a compensation circuit CC,and an organic light-emitting diode OLED. The organic light-emittingdiode (OLED) operates to emit light according to drive current generatedby the drive transistor DR.

In response to a gate signal supplied through a first-a gate line GL1 a,the switching transistor SW performs switching in such a manner that adata signal supplied from a first data line DL1 is stored, as a datavoltage, in the capacitor Cst. According to the data voltage stored inthe capacitor Cst, the drive transistor DR operates in such a mannerthat drive current flows between a high potential power line V_(DD) anda low potential power line V_(GND).

The compensation circuit CC is a circuit for compensating for athreshold voltage or the like of the drive transistor DR. Thecompensation circuit CC is configured with one or more thin filmtransistors and a capacitor. The compensation circuit has aconfiguration that varies from one compensation method to another. Oneexample of the configuration thereof is described as follows.

As illustrated in FIG. 3 , the compensation circuit CC includes asensing transistor ST and a reference line VREF. The sensing transistorST is connected between a source line of the drive transistor DR and ananode electrode (hereinafter referred to as a sensing node) of theorganic light-emitting diode (OLED). The sensing transistor ST operatesin such a manner that an initialization voltage (or a sensing voltage)transferred through the reference line VREF is supplied to the sensingnode or that a voltage or current of the sensing node is sensed.

A gate electrode of the switching transistor SW is connected to thefirst-a gate line GL1 a, a first electrode thereof is connected to thefirst data line DL1, and a second electrode is connected to a gateelectrode of the drive transistor DR. The gate electrode of the drivetransistor DR is connected to a second electrode of the switchingtransistor SW, a first electrode thereof is connected to a first powerline EVDD, and a second electrode thereof is connected to an anodeelectrode of the organic light-emitting diode OLED. A first electrode ofthe capacitor Cst is connected to the gate electrode of the drivetransistor DR, and a second electrode thereof is connected to the anodeelectrode of the organic light-emitting diode OLED. The anode electrodeof the organic light-emitting diode OLED is connected to a secondelectrode of the drive transistor DR, and a cathode electrode thereof isconnected to a second power line EVSS. A gate electrode of the sensingtransistor ST is connected to a first-b gate line GL1 b, a firstelectrode thereof is connected to the reference line VREF, and a secondelectrode thereof is connected to the second electrode of the drivetransistor DR that is the sensing node, and the anode electrode of theorganic light-emitting diode OLED.

As an example, the sensing transistor ST may operate at the same timeas, or earlier or later than the switching transistor SW, according to acompensation algorithm (or a configuration of a compensation circuit).The reference line VREF may be connected to the data drive unit 130. Inthis case, during an image non-display period, or during a period of Nframes (N is an integer that is equal to or greater than 1), the datadrive unit 130 can sense the sensing node of the sub-pixel, in realtime, and can generate a result of the sensing.

In addition, according to the result of the sensing, a digital-type datasignal, an analog-type data signal, a gamma, or the like may be subjectto compensation. Then, the compensation circuit that generates acompensation signal (or a compensation voltage) on the basis of theresult of the sensing may be realized as an internal circuit of the datadrive unit or an internal or separate circuit of the timing controlunit.

A light blocking layer LS may be disposed only underneath a channelregion of the drive transistor DR. Alternatively, the light blockinglayer LS may be disposed not only underneath the channel region of thedrive transistor DR, but also underneath the respective channel regionsof the switching transistor SW and the sensing transistor ST. The lightblocking layer LS may be used for the purpose of simply blockingexternal light. Alternatively, the light blocking layer LS may beutilized as an electrode that serves to make a connection to a differentelectrode or line and that makes up a capacitor or the like.

In addition, as an example, the sub-pixel that has a 3-transistor (T)1-capacitor (C) structure in which the switching transistor SW, thedrive transistor DR, the capacitor Cst, the organic light-emitting diode(OLED), and the sensing transistor ST are included is described withreference to FIG. 3 . However, in a case where the compensation circuit(CC) is added, the sub-pixel may be configured to have one otherstructure, such as a 3T2C, 4T2C, 5T1C, or 6T2C structure.

In addition, thin film transistors, such as the switching transistor SW,the drive transistor DR, and the sensing transistor ST, may be realizedusing a low-temperature polysilicon (LTPS), amorphous silicon (a-Si),oxide, or organic semiconductor layer as a base layer.

FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a cross section of the display panel.FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating a mechanical feature of the displaypanel that is illustrated in FIG. 4 . FIG. 6 is a top-view diagramillustrating the display panel. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a crosssection of the display panel on a per-pixel basis.

As illustrated in FIG. 4 , the display panel 101 includes a first board101 a, an active area A/A, a protective film layer 120, and a secondboard 101 b. The first board 101 a and the second board 101 b are eachformed of one selected from among plastics, such as polyimide (PI),polyethersulfone (PES), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polycarbonates(PC), polyethylene, polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), and acrylonitrilebutadiene styrene (ABS).

The active area A/A is formed between the first board 101 a and thesecond board 101 b. Sub-pixels and various signal lines and power linesare formed in the active area A/A. The sub-pixels, the various signallines, and power lines that are positioned in the active area A/A areformed using a thin film process.

Structures, such as the sub-pixels, the various signal lines, and powerlines that are formed in the active area A/A, are subject to water(moisture) or oxygen. For this reason, the active area A/A is protectedby the protective film layer 120. The protective film layer 120 may beconfigured to be single-layered or multi-layered. Alternatively, theprotective film layer 120 may be formed by alternately stacking anorganic layer and an inorganic layer on top of each other. According toan interlayer structure of the protective film layer 120, the secondboard 101 b may be omitted.

The organic light-emitting display device that is manufactured using theabove-described display panel 101 as a base panel is realized as thetop-emission type, the bottom-emission type or the dual-emission type.

As illustrated in FIG. 5 , the display panel 101 described above mayhave the property of flexibility. Therefore, the organic light-emittingdisplay device that is manufactured using the flexible display panel 150as a base panel is realized in such various forms as the artificially ormechanically bent form and the form of having a curved surface.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an exemplary display device that ispossibly included in an electronic apparatus.

With reference to FIG. 6 , a display device 100 includes at least oneactive area, and an array of pixels is formed in the active area. One ormore inactive areas may be disposed in the vicinity of the active areaA/A. That is, the inactive area I/A may be adjacent to one or more flanksurfaces of the active area A/A. In FIG. 6 , the inactive area I/Asurrounds the active area A/A in the form of a rectangle. However, ashape of the active area A/A and a shape and/or disposing of theinactive area I/A adjacent to the active area A/A are not limited to anexample that is illustrated in FIG. 6 . The respective shapes of theactive area A/A and the inactive area I/A may be suitable for a designof an electronic apparatus equipped with the display device 100.Exemplary shapes of the active area A/A include a pentagon, a hexagon, acircle, an ellipse, and so on.

Each pixel within the active area A/A may be associated with a pixelcircuit. The pixel circuit may include one or more switching transistorsand one or more drive transistors on a backplane. Each pixel circuit maybe electrically connected to a gate line and a data line in order tocommunicate with one or more drive circuits such as a gate driver and adata driver that are positioned in the inactive area I/A.

The drive circuit, as illustrated in FIG. 6 , may be realized as a thingfilm transistor (TFT) in the inactive area I/A. This drive circuit maybe referred to as a gate-in-panel (GIP). In addition, severalcomponents, such as a data driver IC, may be mounted on a separatedprinted circuit board and be combined with a connection interface (aPAD, a bump, a pin, or the like) that is disposed in the inactive areaI/A, using a circuit film, such as a flexible printed circuit board(FPCB), a chip-on-film (COF), or a tape-carrier-package (TCP). Theinactive area I/A may be raised or lowered along with the connectioninterface, and thus a printed circuit (a COF, a PCB, or the like) may bepositioned behind the display device 100.

The display device 100 may further include various additional elementsfor generating various signals or driving a pixel in the active areaA/A. The additional element for driving a pixel may be an invertercircuit, a multiplexer, an electrostatic discharge circuit or the like.The display device 100 may also include an additional element associatedwith a function other than pixel driving. For example, the displaydevice 100 may include additional elements that provide a touch sensingfunction, a user authentication function (for example, fingerprintrecognition), a multi-level pressure sensing function, a tactilefeedback function, and the like. The additional elements mentioned abovemay be positioned in an external circuit that is connected to theinactive area I/A and/or the connection interface.

One or more edges of the display device 100 may be raised or lowered insuch a manner as to be positioned at a remote distance away from thecentral portion. One or more portions of the display device 100 may beraised or lowered. Therefore, the display device 100 may be defined ashaving a substantially flat portion and a raised or lowered portion.That is, one portion (for example, a wiring portion between the PAD andthe active area A/A) of the display device 100 may be raised or loweredat a predetermined angle. The one portion may be referred to as theraised or lowered portion. The raised or lowered portion includes acurvature section that is actually curved with a predetermined curveradius. Although this is not always true, the central portion of thedisplay device 100 may be substantially flat, and an edge portionthereof may be the raised or lowered portion.

When the inactive area I/A is raised or lowered, the inactive area I/Ais not seen from a front surface of the display device, or aminimum-sized portion thereof is seen from the front surface thereof.One portion of the inactive area I/A, which is seen from the frontsurface of the display device, may be covered with a bezel. The bezelmay be formed as an independent structure, a housing, or one othersuitable element. One portion of the inactive area I/A, which is seenfrom the front surface of the display device, may be hidden underneathan opaque mask layer, such as black ink (for example, polymer filledwith carbon black). This opaque mask layer may be provided on variouslayers (a touch sense layer, a polarization layer, a cover layer, andthe like) that are included in the display device 100.

The raised or lowered portion has a curvature angle of □ with respect toa curvature axis and a curvature radius of R and is raised or lowered inthe direction from the center portion to the outside. The raised orlowered portions do not need to have the same size. In addition, thecurvature angle of θ with respect to the curvature axis and thecurvature radius of R from the curvature axis vary from one raised orlowered portion to another.

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional diagram schematically illustrating theactive area A/A and the inactive area I/A of the display deviceaccording to an aspect of the present disclosure.

The active area A/A and the inactive area I/A that are illustrated inFIG. 7 may be partially matched with the active area A/A and theinactive area I/A, respectively, that are described with reference toFIG. 6 . As an example of the organic light-emitting display device, thedisplay device will be described below.

In the case of the organic light-emitting display device, thin filmtransistors 102, 104, and 108, organic light-emitting elements 112, 114,and 116, and various functional layers are positioned on a base layer101 in the active area A/A. On the other hand, various drive circuits(for example, a GIP), an electrode, a wiring line, a functionalstructure, and the like may be positioned on the base layer 101 in theinactive area I/A.

The base layer 101 supports various constituent elements of an organiclight-emitting display device 100. The base layer 101 may be formed of adielectric material, such as for example glass or plastic. A board (anarray board) is also conceptually defined as including elements andfunctional layers, for example, a switching TFT, a drive TFT, an organiclight-emitting element, a protective film, and the like, which areformed on the base layer 101.

A buffer layer 103 may be positioned on a base layer 101 a. The bufferlayer 103 is a functional layer for protecting a thin film transistor(TFT) from impurities, such as alkali ions flowing out of the base layer101 a or layers below. The buffer layer 103 may be formed of siliconoxide (SiOx) or silicon nitride (SiNx). The buffer layer 103 may bemulti-layers formed of these materials. The buffer layer 103 may includea multi-buffer and/or an active buffer.

The thin film transistor is deposited on the base layer 101 a or thebuffer layer 103. The thin film transistor may be formed by sequentiallystacking a semiconductor layer (active layer), a gate dielectric layer(gate insulator), a gate electrode, an interlayer dielectric layer(ILD), and source and drain electrodes on top of each other. Otherwise,the thin film transistor, as illustrated in FIG. 7 , may be formed bysequentially depositing a gate electrode 104, a gate dielectric layer105, a semiconductor layer 102, and source and drain electrodes 108.

The semiconductor layer 102 may be formed of polysilicon (p-Si). In thiscase, impurities may be doped into a predetermined region. In addition,the semiconductor layer 102 may be formed of amorphous silicon (a-Si)and be formed of one of various organic semiconductor materials, such aspentacene. Furthermore, the semiconductor layer 102 may be formed ofoxide.

The gate electrode 104 may be formed of one of various conductivematerials, for example, magnesium (Mg), aluminum (Al), nickel (Ni),chromium (Cr), molybdenum (Mo), tungsten (W), gold (Au), an alloy ofthese materials, or the like.

The gate dielectric layer 105 and the interlayer dielectric layer (ILD)may be formed of a dielectric material, such as silicon oxide (SiOx) orsilicon nitride (SiNx), and additionally, may be formed of a dielectricorganic material or the like. A contact hole through which a source anddrain region is exposed may be formed by selectively removing the gatedielectric layer 105 and the interlayer dielectric layer.

The source and drain electrodes 108 may be formed by depositing a singlelayer of or a multi-layer of an electrode material on the gatedielectric layer 105 or the interlayer dielectric layer (ILD). Ifnecessary, a passivation layer 109 formed of an inorganic dielectricmaterial may cover the source and drain electrodes 108.

A flattening layer 107 may be positioned on the thin film transistor.The flattening layer 107 protects the thin film transistor and flattensan upper portion thereof. The flattening layer 107 may be configured tohave various forms. Various modifications to the flattening layer 107are possible. For example, the flattening layer 107 may be formed froman organic dielectric film, such as benzocyclobutene (BCB) or acrylic,or be formed from an inorganic dielectric film, such as a siliconnitride film (SiNx) or a silicon oxide film (SiOx). Furthermore, theflattening layer 107 may be configured to be single-layered and bedouble- or multi-layered.

An organic light-emitting element may be formed by sequentiallydepositing a first electrode 112, an organic light-emitting layer 114,and a second electrode 116 on top of each other. That is, the organiclight-emitting element may be configured with the first electrode 112formed on the flattening layer 107, the organic light-emitting layer 114positioned on the first electrode 112, and the second electrode 116 onthe organic light-emitting layer 114.

The first electrode 112 is electrically connected to the drain electrode108 of the thin film transistor through the contact hole. In a casewhere the organic light-emitting display device 100 is the top-emissiontype, the first electrode 112 may be formed of an opaque conductivematerial having high reflectivity. For example, the first electrode 112may be formed of silver (Ag), aluminum (Al), gold (Au), molybdenum (Mo),tungsten (W), chromium (Cr), an alloy of these materials, or the like.The first electrode 112 may be an anode of an organic light-emittingdiode.

A bank 110 is formed in an area other than a light-emitting area.Accordingly, the bank 110 has a bank hole through which the firstelectrode 112 corresponding to the light-emitting area is exposed. Thebank 110 may be formed of an inorganic dielectric material, such assilicon nitride film (SiNx) or a silicon oxide film (SiOx), or be formedof an organic dielectric material, such as BCB, acrylic-based resin, orimide-based resin.

The organic light-emitting layer 114 is positioned on the firstelectrode 112 exposed through the bank 110. The organic light-emittinglayer 114 may include a light-emitting layer, an electron injectionlayer, an electron transport layer, a hole transport layer, a holeinjection layer, and the like. The organic light-emitting layer 114 maybe configured to have a single light-emitting structure in which onelight beam is emitted, and be configured to have a structure in whichwith multiple light-emitting layers, white light is emitted.

The second electrode 116 is positioned on the organic light-emittinglayer 114. In a case where the organic light-emitting display device 100is the top-emission type, the second electrode 116 is formed of atransparent conductive material, such as indium tin oxide (ITO) orindium zinc oxide (IZO). Thus, light generated in the organiclight-emitting layer 114 is emitted to over the second electrode 116.The second electrode 116 may be a cathode of the organic light-emittingdiode.

An encapsulation layer 120 is positioned on the second electrode 116.The encapsulation layer 120 blocks oxygen and water from permeating fromthe outside in order to prevent oxidation of a light-emitting materialand an electrode material. When the organic light-emitting element isexposed to water or oxygen, a pixel shrinkage phenomenon in which thelight-emitting area is reduced can appear, or a dark spot can occur inthe light-emitting area. The encapsulation layer 120 may be formed froman inorganic film formed of glass, metal, aluminum oxide (AlOx) orsilicon (Si)-based material, or may have a structure in which aninorganic film 121-1, an organic film 122, and an inorganic film 121-2are alternately stacked on top of each other. In this case, theinorganic films 121-1 and 121-2 serve to block water or oxygen frompermeating, and the organic film 122 serves to flatten the respectivesurfaces of the inorganic films 121-1 and 121-2. A path for water oroxygen flow is lengthened and becomes more complicated when theencapsulation layer is formed by depositing several thin film layers ontop of each other than when the encapsulation layer is formed as asingle layer. Thus, it is difficult for the water or the oxygen topermeate into the organic light-emitting element.

A barrier film may be positioned on the encapsulation layer 120 and thusmay encapsulate the entire base layer 101. The barrier film may be aretardation film or an optically isotropic film. In this case, anadhesive layer 145 may be positioned between the film and theencapsulation layer 120. The adhesive layer bonds the encapsulationlayer 120 and the barrier film together. The adhesive layer 145 may be aheat-curable or self-curing adhesive. For example, the adhesive layer145 may be formed of a material such as barrier pressure sensitiveadhesive (B-PSA).

A pixel circuit and a light-emitting element are not disposed in theinactive area I/A. However, a base layer 101 and an organic/inorganiclayers 130, 105, 107, and 120 may be present in the inactive area I/A.In addition, for other purposes, materials that are used for configuringthe active area A/A may be disposed in the inactive area I/A. Forexample, as a wiring line or an electrode, a metal 104′ that is formedof the same material as a gate electrode of the TFT in the active area,or a metal 108′ that is formed of the same material as a source/drainelectrode may be disposed in the inactive area I/A. Furthermore, as awiring line or an electrode, a metal 112′ that is formed of the samematerial as one electrode (for example, an anode) of the organiclight-emitting diode may be disposed in the inactive area I/A.

The base layer 101, the buffer layer 103, the gate dielectric layer 105,the flattening layer 107, and the like in the inactive area I/A are thesame as those in the active area A/A, which are described above. The dam190 is a structure for preventing the organic film 122 from entering toofar into the inactive area I/A. Various circuits and electrodes/wiringlines that are disposed in the inactive area I/A may be formed from thegate metal 104′ and/or the source/drain metal 108′. In this case, thegate metal 104′ is formed of the same material as the gate electrode ofthe TFT, in the same process as the gate electrode thereof is formed.Furthermore, the source/drain metal 108′ is formed of the same materialas a source/drain electrode of the TFT, in the same process as thesource/drain electrode thereof is formed.

For example, the source/drain metal may be used as a power (for example,a base power V_(SS)) wiring line 108′. In this case, the power wiringline 108′ is connected to the metal layer 112′, and a cathode 116 of theorganic light-emitting diode receives power by being connected to thesource/drain metal 108′ and the meal layer 112′. The metal layer 112′may be brought into contact with the power wiring line 108′, may extendover the outermost sidewall of the flattening layer 107, and may bebrought into contact with the cathode 116 over the flattening layer 107.The metal layer 112′ may be a metal layer that is formed of the samematerial as an anode 112 of the organic light-emitting diode, in thesame process as the anode 112 thereof is formed.

FIGS. 8A and 8B are diagrams each illustrating a structure of an outerportion of the organic light-emitting display device according to anaspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 8A is an enlarged diagram illustrating an A area of FIG. 6 . InFIG. 8A, only specific conductive lines are illustrated and otherconductive lines (a data line, a gate signal line, and the like) areomitted. On the other hand, in FIG. 8A, a curvature section B that ispossibly curved is illustrated. The curvature section is as describedwith reference to FIG. 6 . On the other hand, the encapsulation layer120 of which the structure is described with reference to FIG. 7 maycover one portion of the A area or the entire A area. In FIG. 8B, it isillustrated that the encapsulation layer 120 covers one portion of the Aarea.

The conductive line 108′ extends from the connection interface PADtoward the direction of the active area. In this case, the conductiveline 108′ may be formed on a single layer. As illustrated, therespective conductors 108′ and 104′ on two layers may be connected.

The conductive line 108′ may be a conductive line along which alow-level power V_(SS) is transferred to the pixel circuit in the activearea. In this case, the conductive line 108′ may surround the entireactive area. Alternatively, the conductive line 108′ may be a conductiveline along which a high- or low-level power V_(DD) or an initializationpower V_(INI) is transferred to the pixel circuit in the active areaA/A. In an example in FIG. 8A, a conductive line on the left side is aconductive line along which the low-level power V_(SS) is transferred,and a conductive line on the right side is a conductive line along whichthe initialization power V_(INI) is transferred.

The conductive line 108′ may be formed of the same metal as the sourceor drain electrode of the thin film transistor TFT in the active area,in the same layer as the source or drain electrode thereof is formed. Inthis case, the conductive line 108′ may be a multi-layered metal (whichis referred to as Ti/Al/Ti) that results from stacking Ti, Al, and Ti inthis order on top of each other. In FIG. 8B, it is illustrated that thegate dielectric layer 105 is positioned underneath the conductive line108′. This is only one example of implementation. Other layers may bepositioned underneath the conductive line 108′.

There is a concern that the conductive line 108′ formed of titanium(Ti), aluminum (Al), and titanium (Ti) will be exposed to an etchant andthus will be etched during a subsequent process, for example, a processsuch as forming the anode of the organic light-emitting diode. Thisunnecessary etching can cause a defective conductive line (particularly,aluminum is more subject to etching than titanium). Because of this, acorner portion of the conductive line 108′ is covered with an organicmaterial layer 107. The organic material layer 107 suppresses a flanksurface of the conductive line 108′ from being damaged (etched) in theabove-described process. In this case, for efficiency of manufacturing,the organic material layer 107 may be formed of the same material as aflattening layer on the thin film transistor TFT, in the same process asthe flattening layer thereon is formed. The organic material layer 107suppresses the flank surface of the conductive line from being damaged(etched). However, water may be diffused into the display device throughthe organic material layer 107. In order to prevent this phenomenon, asillustrated in FIG. 8B, the organic material layer 107 is cut into twoparts, and two parts of the conductive line 108′ can be connectedthrough the conductors 104′ underneath the two parts, respectively, ofthe connective line 108.

However, as the display device gradually decreases in size, the spacethat is to be occupied by the above-described structure decreases insize. The inventors recognized this problem and conceived a structure inwhich with a shape of the conductive line 108′, water is prevented frombeing diffused.

FIGS. 9A to 9C are diagrams each illustrating a structure of an outerportion of an organic light-emitting display device according to anotheraspect of the present disclosure.

The recent trend has been to maximize an active area and reduce aninactive area (bezel) according to a request for aestheticdesign/functionality. In addition, an increase in resolution increasesthe number of various signal lines. Accordingly, as in FIGS. 9A and 9B,the respective numbers of conductive lines 204′ and 208′ that intersectincreases. Conductive lines in each layer are insulated by a dielectriclayer 205. As illustrated in FIG. 3 , in terms of space, it is verydifficult to connect metals in two layers using a jumping structure andthus to use the metals as one conductive line. That is, in each layer,an already-designed conductive line occupies most of the space. Thus,there is no area where a conductor for connecting upper or lowerconductive lines is further disposed.

With reference to FIGS. 9A and 9B, both ends of the conductive line 208′are each configured to have an embossed structure or an unevenstructure. Then, a structure in which an encapsulation layer 220 coversan upper portion of the conductive line 208′ without depositing anorganic material layer 207 on the conductive 208′ is employed. Waterpermeates into the display device along an end of the conductive line208′. When both ends of the conductive line 208′ are formed to have theembossed structure or the uneven structure, a path for water permeationis lengthened. As a result, a phenomenon where water permeates into thedisplay device can be delayed.

However, the disclosures found a problem with the above-describedstructure. FIG. 9C is a cross-sectional diagram taken along lineIII-III′ in FIG. 9A. With reference to FIG. 9C, unlike in FIGS. 8A and8B, the organic material layer 107 for protecting the conductive linedoes is not present on the conductive line 208′ for conductive-lineprotection. Because of this, when performing a process of forming theanode of the organic light-emitting diode, the conductive line 208′ isexposed to an anode etchant and thus is etched. As illustrated above,the conductive line 208′ is configured to be formed from a triple layerof titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), and titanium (Ti). In this case, due toa difference in an etching rate of the anode etchant, the aluminum Alpositioned in the middle is etched much more, and thus an aluminum voidis formed. This void is formed by upper and lower titanium (Ti) tips.Subsequently, when the encapsulation layer 220 is formed on an upperportion of the conductive line 108′, due to the aluminum void, theencapsulation layer 220 does not completely cover a flank surface of theconductive line 208′. Thus, a recess S called a seam is formed in theencapsulation layer 220.

In this process, due to the recess S, damage occurs easily such as acrack, and a path along which a foreign material, such as water,permeates is created. The permeating water can cause corrosion of theconductive line or can cause a drive defect of the display device.Accordingly, the inventors recognized this problem and conceived astructure in which water diffusion is prevented with a structure of theconductive line 208′.

FIGS. 10A and 10B are diagrams each schematically illustrating astructure of an outer portion of an organic light emitting displaydevice according to still another aspect of the present disclosure.

FIG. 10A is an enlarged diagram illustrating the A portion in FIG. 6 .For convenient description, only specific conductive lines (for example,a power wiring line) are illustrated and other conductive lines (a gateline and a data line) are omitted. In addition, the conductive lines308′ are not all illustrated on a per-type basis. FIG. 10B is across-sectional diagram taken along line IV-IV′ in FIG. 10A. In FIG.10A, the curvature section B that is possibly curved is illustrated. Onthe other hand, an encapsulation layer 320 of which the structure isdescribed with reference to FIG. 7 may cover one portion of the A areaor the entire A area. In this case, the encapsulation layer 320 maycover up to only a lower portion of the curvature section B, and theencapsulation layer 320 may not be provided in the curvature section Bin which there is a concern that damage will occur.

A board 301 a may include the active area A/A and the inactive area I/Ain the vicinity of the active area A/A. A dielectric layer 305 may bedisposed over the board 301 a. A pad into which a signal or power isinput may be disposed in the inactive area I/A. A conductive line 308′which is disposed on the dielectric layer 305, which is connected to thePAD, and along which power is transferred to the active area A/A may beformed. A bump pattern 324 is disposed underneath the dielectric layer305. The bump pattern 324 has a positive taper that is inclined towardthe direction of the conductive line. Both sides of the conductive linemay include an inclined surface.

The conductive line 308′ may include a first portion 308′a and therespective second portions 308′b on both sides of the first portion308′a. The more an end of the second portion 308′b is approached, themore a distance thereof from the board increases. That is, thedielectric layer 305 is present underneath the conductive line 308′. Thebump pattern 324 is disposed underneath the dielectric layer 305adjacent to the conductive line 308′. The dielectric layer 305 hasdifferent heights due to a portion where the bump pattern 324 isdisposed and a portion where the bump pattern 324 is not disposed.Because the bump pattern 324 includes a positive taper that is inclinedtoward the direction of the conductive line 308′, the dielectric layer305 on the bump pattern 324 also has an inclined surface according to ashape of the positive taper of the bump pattern 324. With theinclination of the dielectric layer 305 due to the bump pattern 324, themore the second portion 308′b of the conductive line 308′ approaches anend of the conductive line 308′, the more a distance thereof from theboard 301 a increases. That is, the conductive line 308′b is bent at apredetermined angle toward the upward direction.

An angle of the tape of the bump pattern 324 is equal to or greater than10° and is equal to or smaller than 60°. If the angle of the taper issmaller than 10°, the second portion 308′b of the conductive line 308′is not inclined sufficiently. Because of this, when the encapsulationlayer 320 is disposed on the conductive line 308′, a crack may occur ina flank surface of the conductive line 308′. Then, in a case where theangle of the taper of the bump pattern 324 exceeds 60°, there is alikelihood that the encapsulation layer 320 will be defective incoverage.

Both ends of the conductive line 308′ may overlap with the taper of thebump pattern 324. In this case, the both ends of the conductive line308′ also have to face in the upward direction. When this is done, asdescribed above, the seam can be prevented from occurring in theencapsulation layer 320.

The conductive line 308′ may be configured with a lower layer 308′-1brought into contact with the board 301 a, an upper layer 308′-2 on thelower layer 308′-1, and an intermediate layer 308′-3 between the upperlayer 308′-2 and the lower layer 308′-1. A width of the intermediatelayer 308′-3 may be smaller than the respective widths of the upperlayer 308′-2 and the lower layer 308′-1. In addition, the width of theupper layer 308′-2 may be greater than that of the intermediate layer308′-3 and be smaller than that of the lower layer 308′-1.

The thin film transistor may be disposed in the active area A/A. Theorganic light-emitting element that is disposed on the thin filmtransistor and is electrically connected to the thin film transistor maybe included. The encapsulation layer 320 that blocks water and/or oxygenfrom permeating from the outside may be formed on the organiclight-emitting element.

The encapsulation layer 320 may be brought into contact with an entireflank surface of the lower layer 308′-1 of the conductive line 308′ andone portion of an upper surface thereof. In addition, the encapsulationlayer 320 may be brought into contact with one portion of a lowersurface of the upper layer 308′-2 of the conductive line 308′ and aflank surface of the intermediate layer 308′-3. That is, the conductiveline 308′, as described above, is configured to be formed from thetriple layer of titanium (Ti), aluminum (Al), and titanium (Ti). In thiscase, due to the difference in the etching rate of the anode etchant,the aluminum Al positioned in the middle is etched much more, and thusthe conductive line 308′ has the structure in which the aluminum void isformed. Due to the taper of the bump pattern, the dielectric layer 305is inclined. Due to the inclined dielectric layer 305, both end portionsof the second portion 308′b of the conductive line 308′ are raised at apredetermined angle toward the upward direction. With theabove-described structure of the conductive line 308′, the encapsulationlayer 320 covering the conductive line 308′ prevents the seam fromoccurring in a flank surface of the conductive line 308′. Thus, theencapsulation layer 320 can have the improved step coverage.

The conductive line 308′ may be formed of the same material as thesource and drain electrodes 108 of the thin film transistor in theactive area A/A, in such a manner as to have the same stacked structureas the source and drain electrodes 108 thereof.

The bump pattern 324 may be formed of the same material as at least oneof the semiconductor layer 102 and the gate electrode 104 of the thinfilm transistor. The aspects of the present disclosure are described indetail above with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, theprevent disclosure is not necessarily limited to the aspects. Variousmodifications to the aspects are possibly implemented within the scopeof the technical idea of the present disclosure. Therefore, the aspectsdisclosed in the present specification are for describing the technicalidea of the present disclosure, rather than limiting it, and do notimpose any limitation on the scope of the technical idea of the presentdisclosure.

Features of various aspects of the present disclosure may be integratedor combined severally or as a whole. It is apparent to a person ofordinary skill that various interworking operations or drivingoperations are possible. The aspects may be implemented independent ofeach other or may be implemented in conjunction with each other.Accordingly, the scope of the present disclosure should be defined bythe following claims. All equivalent technical ideas that fall withinthe proper scope should be interpreted to be included within the scopeof the present disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An organic light-emitting display devicecomprising: a board including an active area and an inactive areaadjacent to the active area; a dielectric layer disposed over the board;a pad disposed in the inactive area and into which a signal or power isinput; a plurality of conductive lines disposed on the dielectric layerand connected to the pad and along which the power is transferred to theactive area; and a bump pattern disposed underneath the dielectric layerand having a positive taper that is inclined toward a direction of theplurality of conductive lines, wherein both sides of the plurality ofconductive lines have an inclined surface, and wherein the bump patternis disposed between adjacent conductive lines in a plan view, whereinthe plurality of conductive lines comprises: a lower layer contactingthe board; an upper layer disposed on the lower layer; and anintermediate layer disposed between the upper layer and the lower layer,and wherein the intermediate layer has a width smaller than those of theupper layer and the lower layer.
 2. The organic light-emitting displaydevice according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of conductive linescomprises a first portion and a second portion on both sides of thefirst portion.
 3. The organic light-emitting display device according toclaim 2, wherein an end of the second portion is distanced from theboard more than a middle portion of the second portion.
 4. The organiclight-emitting display device according to claim 2, wherein the secondportion of the plurality of conductive lines is raised or lowered at apredetermined angle toward the upward direction.
 5. The organiclight-emitting display device according to claim 1, wherein an angle ofthe taper of the bumper pattern is equal to or greater than 10° and isequal to or smaller than 60°.
 6. The organic light-emitting displaydevice according to claim 1, wherein the width of the upper layer isgreater than the width of the intermediate layer and is smaller than thewidth of the lower layer.
 7. The organic light-emitting display deviceaccording to claim 6, further comprising: a thin film transistordisposed in the active area; an organic light-emitting element disposedon the thin film transistor and electrically connected to the thin filmtransistor; and an encapsulation layer covering the organiclight-emitting element.
 8. The organic light-emitting display deviceaccording to claim 7, wherein the encapsulation layer contacts an entireflank surface of a lower layer of the plurality of conductive lines andone portion of an upper surface thereof.
 9. The organic light-emittingdisplay device according to claim 7, wherein the encapsulation layer isbrought into contact with one portion of a lower surface of the upperlayer of the plurality of conductive lines and a flank surface of theintermediate layer.
 10. The organic light-emitting display deviceaccording to claim 7, wherein the plurality of conductive lines areformed of a same material as source and drain electrodes of the thinfilm transistor.
 11. The organic light-emitting display device accordingto claim 7, wherein the bump pattern prevents a crack in theencapsulation layer from occurring due to different heights of an end ofthe plurality of conductive lines.
 12. The organic light-emittingdisplay device according to claim 11, wherein the bump pattern is formedof a same material as at least one of a semiconductor layer and a gateelectrode of the thin film transistor.
 13. The organic light-emittingdisplay device according to claim 1, wherein the upper layer of theplurality of conductive lines are formed of a same material as the lowerlayer thereof.
 14. The organic light-emitting display device accordingto claim 1, wherein the plurality of conductive lines are at least oneof low-level power (Vss) wiring lines, high-level power (VDD) wiringlines, and initialization power (Vmi) wiring lines.
 15. An organiclight-emitting display device comprising: a board including an activearea and an inactive area adjacent to the active area; a dielectriclayer disposed over the board; a pad disposed in the inactive area andinto which a signal or power is input; a conductive line disposed on thedielectric layer and connected to the pad and along which the power istransferred to the active area; and a bump pattern disposed underneaththe dielectric layer and having a positive taper that is inclined towarda direction of the conductive line, wherein the conductive line has aninclined surface disposed at both sides of the conductive line and aflat surface disposed vertically lower than the inclined surface, andwherein each of the inclined surface and the dielectric layer has anangle matching an angle of a taper of the bumper pattern, and whereinthe conductive line comprises: a lower layer contacting the board; anupper layer disposed on the lower layer; and an intermediate layerdisposed between the upper layer and the lower layer, and wherein theintermediate layer has a width smaller than those of the upper layer andthe lower layer.
 16. The organic light-emitting display device accordingto claim 15, wherein the width of the upper layer is greater than thewidth of the intermediate layer and is smaller than the width of thelower layer.